1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to medical devices, and, in particular, to a surgical arm system for positioning a medical instrument in connection with a surgical procedure. More particularly, the present invention provides such a surgical arm system, wherein the system includes at least one quick connect/release mechanism to expedite and facilitate disassembly and reassembly of the arm (e.g., for sterilization purposes), while ensuring that the arm functions reliably, has precise dimensions, and is structurally sound following each instance of disassembly and reassembly.
2. Description of Related Art
Most surgical procedures entail the active participation of several, and often many individuals, some of whom (e.g., one or more surgeons) have invaluable roles in the procedures, and still others who primarily represent a pair of free hands for assisting the surgeon(s).
Unfortunately, the physical presence of these assisting personnel necessarily causes crowding in the vicinity of the site (e.g., operating table) of the procedure. That, in turn, tends to create an environment of increased chaos during already stressful surgical procedures, and, arguably, leads to as many problems as are prevented by the presence of such individuals.
Recently, however, surgical arms have been developed that can substitute for these assisting personnel during certain medical procedures. In most instances, one or more of such arms are used (in lieu of such assisting personnel) to position and then hold in place one or more medical instruments at a fixed locus near or within a patient during a surgical procedure.
Such arms occupy much less space than medical personnel and, therefore, uncrowd the area at or near which a surgical procedure is occurring. This, however, is not their only benefit. Unlike medical personnel, these arms do not tire or flinch, are incapable of being distracted (e.g., by visual or aural stimuli, and/or by the need to eat, drink, or to use bathroom facilities), are not required to be trained or paid, and can be maneuvered and positioned with highly reliable accuracy, wherein their locus generally can be fixed and maintained for as long as desired by their operators.
Despite the benefits of such arms, they do suffer from one especially notable drawback; namely, they tend to be difficult to disassemble and, in particular to reassemble, e.g., to allow for sterilization thereof. This drawback affects many known surgical arms, such as the device depicted and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,884 to Ognier (“the Ognier arm”).
As shown in FIG. 1 (reproduced herein as FIG. 1) of U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,884, the Ognier arm includes several interconnected parts/segments that, when assembled, form a rather long arm with many curves and junctions that render the arm difficult/cumbersome to sterilize. Moreover, many of the components of the arm are hollow (i.e., have a lumen defined therein) and, therefore, require periodic cleaning.
In order to allow for simplified sterilization and/or cleaning thereof, such arms are generally at least partially disassembled/dismantled into smaller parts. This is problematic, however, because subsequent reassembly of such arms has proven to be a difficult and time-consuming process.
As shown in FIG. 5 of the Ognier patent (reproduced herein as FIG. 2), many of the parts of this arm are interconnected via threaded elements (e.g., nut ring 46) that must be threaded onto other elements (e.g., element 109) to reassemble the arm.
The thread patterns of these elements, however, hamper such reassembly. For example, the end of the element 109 to which the nut ring 46 attaches has a very fine, double pitched thread. This renders engagement of the nut ring 46 difficult, cumbersome, time consuming and, perhaps more significantly, may hinder the ability to distinguish (either audibly or visually) whether the nut ring is completely/properly engaged to the element.
And if any part of the Ognier surgical arm (or others like it) is improperly reassembled, there is a relatively high likelihood that the arm will not function optimally, or even acceptably.
For example, if a threaded element of the Ognier arm is not completely threaded into place, the arm may not be able to properly support the weight of the instrument(s) that it is designed/calibrated to hold. That, in turn, could compromise the ability of the arm to reliably hold the instrument(s) at all, let alone at a fixed locus.
The consequences of improper or suboptimal functioning of the Ognier arm are generally quite significant. If, for example, the arm malfunctions during a surgical procedure, the instrument may become detached from the arm. If that occurs, the instrument would fall from the arm and likely enter into the sterile field, where, during its descent, it could possibly contact and injure the patient and/or medical personnel.
And if the detached instrument does not contact the patient of any medical personnel, it will likely fall into the non-sterile field, thus necessitating sterilization prior to reuse. The delay that occurs during sterilization would likely necessitate potentially dangerous modification to the surgical procedure, and, in particular, the need for recalculation of the anesthesia dosage supplied to the patient.
Moreover, the detached instrument could become damaged during its fall from the arm such that, even if sterilized, it could not be further used in connection with the procedure. If this occurs and a replacement instrument is not nearby, the entire surgical procedure may be forced to be halted and postponed, thus resulting in potentially severe financial repercussions and, in some cases, moderate to serious adverse consequences to the short- or long-term prognosis of the patient.
Also, the mere possibility that such problems may occur can negatively affect a surgical procedure. If a surgeon is forced to worry about potential suboptimal functioning of the arm during a procedure, such a distraction could inhibit his/her confidence and ability to concentrate (and, in turn, his/her surgical performance) during the procedure.
Further, while some parts of the Ognier arm, when incorrectly or improperly reassembled, can cause serious problems to occur, still other parts of the arm are realistically incapable of disassembly by medical personnel given their training and the tools to which they have access.
For example, the compressed air inlet conduit 28 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 (reproduced herein as, respectively, FIGS. 3 and 4) of the Ognier patent extends into, and is integral with the structure of a support block 106 to such an extent that it would require complete, non-trivial disassembly of the support block to allow for the compressed air inlet conduit to be detached therefrom.
Because of this, the conduit 28 tends not to be sterilized as frequently as it likely should. And even if sterilization of the conduit 28 does, in fact, occur, it is generally very difficult/cumbersome to successfully accomplish, and can, in some cases, compromise the structural integrity (i.e., cause kinking) of the conduit, which serves the important role of introducing pressurized gas into the arm to allow the arm to maintain a fixed locus.
Perhaps realizing the difficulty associated with sterilization of surgical arms such as the Ognier arm, some have determined that these types of surgical arms generally do not require frequent sterilization and/or cleaning because sleeves or other protective drapes are recommended. Despite the fact these arms do not directly contact any contaminants during a procedure, it is possible for the surgical arm to become contaminated by secondary exposure. This may occur through inadvertent exposure as a result of splashing or contact with contaminated gloves or drapes. As a result of this, it is necessary to sterilize surgical arms periodically. This requires the disassembly and reassembly of the surgical arms in order to use the surgical arm for extended periods of time and for multiple procedures.
Therefore, a need exists for a surgical arm that may be simply and expeditiously disassembled and reassembled by any member of a surgical team without difficulty and without requiring additional tools, while ensuring that the arm, following each subsequent disassembly and reassembly thereof, is structurally sound, properly dimensioned and able to function in a reliable manner.